This genuine Ancient Jewish bronze coin has been mounted in a modern 18 karat gold ring. Born about 10 B.C., Agrippa I was the grandson of Herod the great and...
This genuine Ancient Jewish bronze coin has been mounted in a modern 18 karat gold ring.
Born about 10 B.C., Agrippa I was the grandson of Herod the great and his wife, Mariamne the Hasmoneans, through whose blood he w as linked to the earlier kings of Israel. His father Aristobulus was executed on Herod's orders about 7 B.C. To ensure his support of Rome, the young prince Agrippa was educated at the imperial court, where he became friends with the future emperors Caligula and Claudius. Through these Roman imperial connections, Agrippa was eventually granted kingship over the Jewish territories of his late uncles. At its peak, his kingdom equaled that of his grandfather Herod. Agrippa became religiously observant and was honored by his subjects. He died suddenly at Caesarea in 44 A.D. Agrippa struck two types of coins: the first was intended for Judea and bears a canopy and ears of barley, as revealed in this stunning example; the other type w as intended for those areas under his control where the majority of the population was non-Jewish, and these coins therefore display a more pagan character. The latter bear the portrait of Claudius, a temple and a quadriga. Agrippa was the first of the Herodian kings who dared to strike his own portrait on his coins; on several he styles himself king Agrippa the great, friend of Caesar.